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After failing to entice even thrift-store shoppers, the next stop for an unwanted book is often
the landfill. Thousands, if not millions, wind up on the heap every year.

“It’s just a tremendous amount,” said Steve Grossman, the president of Creative Green
Marketing, a Westerville-based recycling broker and processor.

The company’s sister operation,
Book-destruction.com, announced a
partnership last week with Goodwill Columbus that aims to dent the flow and return more old tomes
to pulp. Individuals, schools, libraries and other organizations now can drop off unwanted books at
any Goodwill donation center or retail store in Franklin County and know that they will be properly
recycled, Grossman said.

Goodwill officials say they are regularly asked to accept book donations but generally had a
market only for in-demand titles in the thrift stores.

“A lot just did not sell,” said Josh Schilder, the retail-operations manager.

Grossman said he thinks the new book-acceptance and recycle plans will boost donations to
Goodwill and help generate money for the nonprofit organization, which serves people with
disabilities and other challenges. Book-destruction.com and Green Marketing will pay for the
recyclable books by the pound.

“It will increase their store traffic. It’s going to be a major step in reducing their carbon
footprint and their landfill expense,” Grossman said. “The books that they did not have a market
for, they had been landfilling.”

Books present some recycling difficulties because of their components. The paper is easily
recycled, but the other parts are trickier.

“What has not been recyclable is the binding — the entire book with the cover, glues and
cloth,” Grossman said. “These are deterrents for recycling. That’s prevented them from being
recycled on a major basis.”

The company, however, has agreements with paper mills to use special equipment that can
render the whole book. Even the most unloved and unread have futures in pulp.